Preschool Daycare in Arlington, VA

Our own outside Area: safe and away from busy streets

Outside activities Include sports camps like mini-soccer, basketball, hockey, baseball, mini-golf (we have our course) this teaches children that exercise fun. This reflects our “Healthy-Mind Healthy-Body” philosophy. The projects help and enhance with the development of gross and fine motors skills, social skills, language, abstract and concrete thinking. The big back yard at our Preschool Daycare in Arlington is fenced away from traffic, children can explore and play safely!

We have a mini golf course!

At Maria Teresa’s Babies Early Enrichment Center/Daycare, our mission is to provide a safe, nurturing, and educational environment for pre-school children. Our goal is to create a home away from home so that children have a nurturing place to grow emotionally and intellectually. We strive in giving parents peace of mind so that they will have no worries about the safety of their children while they are at work. Our promise is to conscientiously attend to the needs of all the children in our care.

Homemade hot breakfast and lunch

Children shucking corn for a healthy snack is just one of the many activities geared for the children to acquire healthy eating habits. Others include planting a vegetable garden and making salads with the vegetables we grow, making fruit smoothies and fruit popsicles, learning to make their own healthy sandwiches with turkey breast, and other activities involving children with their own nutrition. This will stay with them for the rest of their lives teaching them to make healthier choices. Most importantly, parents have the peace of mind that children are eating well having hearty healthy lunches and breakfasts

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Testimonials

A few letters and notes

Maria Teresa’s came highly recommended from a friend, and for good reason. The staff is excellent, caring, and made our son feel right at home. He was always excited to go to “school.” Five stars!

Martin and Laura Bayr

Our son attended Maria Teresa’s Babies daycare for three years since he was one year old. He got to love his daycare and caregivers very much. Throughout the three years at MTB the owners and caregivers were always very warm and friendly to our son and us. They would always provide us feedback if asked and report on various events. We liked MTB because of the location, organic and international snacks and lunches, the Spanish immersion, and the strong teaching program. We would get quarterly reports on how our son was doing at age specific skills, which was important for us to watch his development. Our son got to learn the alphabet, write his name, read simple words, count and add numbers. In addition, our son brought home many arts and crafts based on the stories of the week, children were even introduced to classic art by various renowned painters. MTB also organized several holiday events where children performed for their parents. Our son also got to play outside in the MTB backyard, which is entirely covered in turf which allowed children to play in almost all weather. We liked it because it provided a clean and safe environment to play in. In addition to the outside play area, children grew their own little garden every year and got to try their fruits and vegetables. MTB facility was always very clean and organized, these are the attributes that were certainly instilled in our son. There are many memories we will cherish due to MTB experience we and our son had. We would definitely recommend MTB to our friends.

The Ball Family

When we brought our son to Maria Teresa’s Babies, we were all quite nervous. Connor had been in a nanny-share until he was just over a year, and going to a daycare setting was going to be a very new experience. We looked around for the right place for him, and settled on Maria Teresa’s because of the ‘homey feel’ we got when we visited.

Connor was extremely happy there. The women who work at MTB are caring, wonderful ladies whose warmth is apparently from the minute you meet them. His teachers and aides always greeted him with a heartfelt hug, and Connor fell in love with all of them. The emphasis on healthy eating and the homemade food was extremely important to us, and Connor fell in love with mealtime a well. The kids got plenty of time outside, and their bodies grew strong along with their minds. Connor took to Spanish immediately, and I have no doubt that as we head out West, he will continue to use it. My husband and I will always be grateful to MTB for the love and kindness they gave to Connor, and to the peace of mind we got as a result.

-The Thomas Family

A note to one of our teachers:

Dear Ms. Naty,

Thank you so much for both the batman gift and the poster that you and all the kids made for Jean-Pierre. Those were extremely thoughtful gifts that have left a very lasting impression on both him and us. The batman gift made it to show and tell twice at his new school and he sleeps with it every night! It is his prize possession! And the poster from the school is priceless... He has it hanging right above his bed. Every night he wants to talk about you and his friends from his "old school." Thank you so much!

You are an amazing teacher who definitely has a passion for what you do, and that is shared with the children. You have a special gift to connect with the kids, especially JP. Thank you for everything you did for him.

I wanted to personally thank you and your excellent staff on a wonderful job teaching our kid(s) while they attended Maria Teresa’s. Both our children had a marvelous time growing under your staff’s tutelage. Our youngest child would always scream, “School Day!” as we got closer to your facility because she was so excited to be with her classmates and teachers. Her experience at Maria Teresa’s will pay dividends as she progresses through the next stage of her academic life. The atmosphere and friendly environment created at Maria Teresa’s appeased any anxiety for us and our children. Due to the Spanish immersion she was exposed to, our children are very enthusiastic about continuing to learn Spanish.

Needless to say, we were very impressed with the attention and patience your staff gave to our children and we will always recommend your school to our friends, family, and acquaintances. We may even ask to enroll again, if our situation should change. Please give our warmest hugs to your staff and we cannot thank you enough for supervision and growth of our infant children.

I am sad to say that Alex will be withdrawing from Maria Teresa's Babies next month. Alex has truly enjoyed his time at Maria Teresas and it was a very difficult decision. (still is hard) but the new location will allow him to get home earlier in the evening with his dad picking him up instead of waiting for me. I know he will miss all of his friends as well as his teachers. He talks about everyone so much. He really loves "school". Thank you for all of your support and I will be happy to provide a reference at anytime. Hopefully if this other option doesn't work out, he can come back!

Thanks

Kelly Jung

Maria Teresa's Babies came highly recommended to us! A friend had her child with them for many years and were extremely satisfied.

As new parents we had to be convinced. We met with Tony and his team and they were very patient with us. Our daughter was 2 months old when she started going to Maria Teresa's Babies.

As soon as we arrived on site, our daughter would begin smiling and would respond to the team's good mornings. Unfortunately a spot opened up at a daycare center in the same building that my wife works in. We are thankful for the time that Mia spent at Maria Teresa's Babies and for the patience of Tony and his team. We highly recommend Maria Teresa's Babies to any parent who is looking for a caring and extremely competent day care provider.

thank you

Mani Mani

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We've had the experience of sending our infant son to both a larger chain daycare center and maria teresa's. We've come to value how maria teresa's took initiative to provide individualized care to our infant compared to the other center. Here, they provided emergency clothing, diapers, and wipes at times of need. We never worried that our child be in soiled clothing if we didn't pack enough spares. The teachers were always excited and warm to greet our son in the morning. They would take him directly from our arms and hold him upon arrival which made the drop off process a happy and smooth transition. They even gave him an endearing spanish nickname that he still smiles to every time i call him by it. All the teachers were so sweet and responsive to the children which made us feel he is in good hands. Most important of all, our son always seemed happy at this place even though he can't yet talk. This was entirely not the case at the other center. We are sad to have left Maria Teresa's due to moving out of the area. This place has made us realize that we want to find the same kind of care at our new location.

We want to take this opportunity to thank everyone at Maria Teresa's Babies for taking such good care of our daughter, Ivana since she was five months old. Ivana was always welcomed with such warmth, love and affection that just made our day. She left the daycare everyday, happy and safe. As we are relocating to Ohio this summer, we are surely going to miss MTB and so will Ivana.

We would highly recommend MTB to anyone seeking quality daycare for their children specially babies and infants. Going back to work is always hard after you have a baby but knowing that your child is in good hands is always assuring.

Thanks again,

Smita & Anurag Chaturvedi

Crystal City, Arlington

I am writing to offer the highest possible praise for Maria Teresa DeSaba’s daycare facility. She has taken care of our son since May 2007 and is also taking care of our new daughter. Our son has benefited tremendously from his experience with Maria Teresa. He is lively, has a fantastic vocabulary and loves being around other children, especially his baby sister. I truly believe his time at Maria Teresa’s helped him adapt well to welcoming a new sibling.

In his nearly two and a half years with Maria Teresa, our son has learned all of his numbers and colors in both English and Spanish. He has also picked up a great deal of Spanish, which he uses frequently. He even teaches us! Recently, he was helping me prepare dinner and he exclaimed, “Comida!” I asked him what that meant and he explained, “Comida means food, to eat…it’s what Maria Teresa says.” Honest! He also loves to hear Cat in the Hat in Spanish because Maria Teresa reads it to him regularly. But my favorite phrase he has learned from Maria Teresa is “Bravo!”, something he expresses regularly at home, at church, and anytime he is impressed by someone or something.

Maria Teresa has created an environment where children learn and have fun, as well as develop wonderful relationships with each other. Our son talks regularly about his friends and the fun things they do together. Having benefited from her taking care of our children from infancy to toddler-hood, I am confident Maria Teresa’s new facility will expand the opportunities for our children to learn and develop and her ability to teach and care for them.

She has faced numerous obstacles in getting the new facility open, but she has not wavered in her determination to do so. It’s a testament to her commitment to providing the best possible environment for children – a true home away from home – that she has persevered these last two years. Maria Teresa is a wonderful asset to our community and a blessing to our family.

Johanna Maney

As new parents of twins, we were very concerned dropping our one year old babies off at a new home day care. Maria Teresa was very understanding of our anxiety and treated us with patience and kindness. Our phone calls were always welcomed and informative. Maria Teresa responded thoroughly to our requests for daily detailed information about the babies daily routine while under her care.

Maria Teresa is always working on enhancing her skills and continuing education. She has referred books to me that I have enjoyed – in particular, The Process of Parenting by Jane B. Brooks. This was a lecture that she attended and shared with me the fascinating topics of discussion.

Our babies are happy, thriving, and interact well with other children. We do not have any anxiety leaving our children in Maria Teresa’s loving and tender care. She feels like a part of our family.

When we were looking for daycare, my wife and I wanted a safe and enriching environment for our daughter -- what we found with Maria Desaba was so much more. Our daughter has been with Maria for two years. The bilingual environment, the developmental education and the love that she has provided our daughter during the day has comforted us as we balance parenting with our busy schedules.

Maria has been a godsend! Our daughter has always left the daycare happy and safe and loved. As we have entrusted Maria with our daughter, we highly recommend, without reservation, Maria Teresa’s Babies to any family looking for childcare.

Our daughter, Mary Katherine, attended Maria Teresa’s home daycare for about 2 years (through early Fall, 2006) and we were highly highly satisfied with the quality of care she received. Maria Teresa and her assistant provided a warm and caring atmosphere, and the children we saw at drop-off and pick-up time were happy and played well with each other. We believe that Maria Teresa has excellent judgment about the children’s personalities and spared no effort to tend to their individual needs.

The daycare was well-managed and Maria Teresa and her assistant displayed great dedication to the children’s well-being. Maria Teresa took regular classes to update her knowledge of child nutrition requirements and age-appropriate activities. Our daughter liked the home-cooked meals very much and we as parents benefited from Maria Teresa’s advice on nutrition and other issues.

We particularly liked the location of Maria Teresa’s home and we believe the Pentagon City area will be very convenient to parents like us who commute to Washington DC and Arlington/Clarendon for work and school. It permitted us to pick up our daughter on time without disruption to a normal work schedule, and we felt confident that in an emergency we would be able to reach the daycare reasonably quickly.

We wholeheartedly recommend Maria Teresa as a childcare provider, and we would be happy to supply additional information.